Doing a brisket tomorrow-wish me luck!

[equinn]

I’m doing a 13 pound brisket tomorrow for a bbq on Saturday. I just seasoned it up by coating it with yellow mustard and seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic, onion, paprika, and chili powder. It’s going in the fridge overnight and will go in the smoker tomorrow morning. Then I plan to pull it out at 203 and rest it for 2 hours before wrapping in plastic and putting in a 140 degree warmer until I’m ready to serve. I think I’ll smoke at 230 until the point gets to 165. Then I’ll wrap it in butcher paper and let it go the rest of the way. Anything wrong with that plan?

 

[jaxgatorz]

Remember that briskets are done when they probe like a skewer into peanut butter.. Not at exact temperature. I would start checking for probe tenderness at around 198. Then keep checking every so often until it probes easily. Good luck !!

 

[chopsaw]

Anything wrong with that plan?

No , but don't be afraid to turn that cook temp up if needed . I normally run around 260 on all beef .
Not sure what you're cooking on .

 

[Chasdev]

Something to consider is that the longer you hold it at 140, the more tender it will be.
If I you have a reliable holding oven system, cook at your leisure and hold until time to eat, including days in the holding oven if it has the ability to prevent moisture loss.

 

[Smokin Okie]

Something to consider is that the longer you hold it at 140, the more tender it will be.
If I you have a reliable holding oven system, cook at your leisure and hold until time to eat, including days in the holding oven if it has the ability to prevent moisture loss.

Doesn't happen. Once the IT drops below 160* , collagen breakdown stops. Holding at 140 does almost nothing for the brisket.

Source = Chris Young, co-author of the chef's bible " Modernist Cuisine " . He says in the comments to this vid, that a long hold might make the brisket 2% more tender.

And its also just science. Collagen begins to break down when meat IT gets in the 160 to 180 range. And once it hits 180, it speeds up exponentially. But below 160*, there's very little going on with the meat. The more time it spends between 180 and done, the more tender it will be.

Aaron Franklin, in his last book, says might as well go ahead and slice a brisket after a two hour rest. He says it will not get any better.

There's a difference between resting and holding.

 

[Coreymacc]

Something to consider is that the longer you hold it at 140, the more tender it will be.
If I you have a reliable holding oven system, cook at your leisure and hold until time to eat, including days in the holding oven if it has the ability to prevent moisture loss.

This is more important than the cook in my opinion, or at least as important. Your rest should take a least an hr to 1½ hrs. Any quicker and you are gonna be dry. Plus holding at 140 is the danger zone, I would hold at 150 to 170 in my opinion.

Corey

 

[equinn]

I’m using a big electric roaster rigged with a temperature controller. Basically turns it off and back on again to maintain temperature. It’s just to hold it until I serve it at 1:00 tomorrow. About 14 hours, I imagine. It’ll be wrapped in the butcher paper and after resting wrapped in the butcher paper and plastic wrap. Hopefully it won’t dry out. One thing I’m concerned about is the trim. I had no clue how, so I didn’t. It’s got some thin areas around the outside. I’m thinking that if I start cutting from the middle and cut point first, maybe I’ll not use the thin part, and if I do it’ll have been sitting in the juices for a while and not be terrible. Problem is I have no idea how many people I’m feeding since it’s a potluck.

 

[chopsaw]

Holding at 140 does almost nothing for the brisket.

I'm with you . Only reason in my opinion to do it , is if the rest isn't ready .
45 minute on the counter waiting for the temp to drop for slicing .
Perfect .

 

[Smokin Okie]

I'm with you . Only reason in my opinion to do it , is if the rest isn't ready .
45 minute on the counter waiting for the temp to drop for slicing .
Perfect .

Brisket does present some problems in aligning cook time with serving time. A long hold helps in that regard. Also allows for the cook to get some sleep.

And barbecue joints could have multiple reasons for long holds , that have nothing to do with tenderness of final product.

Here's what Chris Young said about long holds in the comments to the video above. .............

@michaelhearne4077​

1 month ago
How much collagen conversion happens when BBQ restaurants hold their brisket overnight for 12 hours? How would you calculate it?




@ChrisYoungCooks
1 month ago
I’d need to calculate it using the Arrhenius equation, and it does depend on how much conversion has already happened. But I would estimate that if you’re already nearly done, you might get another 1% to 2% conversion if holding between 140F and 150F

 

[TimboBBQ!]

I’m doing a 13 pound brisket tomorrow for a bbq on Saturday. I just seasoned it up by coating it with yellow mustard and seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic, onion, paprika, and chili powder. It’s going in the fridge overnight and will go in the smoker tomorrow morning. Then I plan to pull it out at 203 and rest it for 2 hours before wrapping in plastic and putting in a 140 degree warmer until I’m ready to serve. I think I’ll smoke at 230 until the point gets to 165. Then I’ll wrap it in butcher paper and let it go the rest of the way. Anything wrong with that plan?

Smoke on !!

 

[tallbm]

I’m doing a 13 pound brisket tomorrow for a bbq on Saturday. I just seasoned it up by coating it with yellow mustard and seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic, onion, paprika, and chili powder. It’s going in the fridge overnight and will go in the smoker tomorrow morning. Then I plan to pull it out at 203 and rest it for 2 hours before wrapping in plastic and putting in a 140 degree warmer until I’m ready to serve. I think I’ll smoke at 230 until the point gets to 165. Then I’ll wrap it in butcher paper and let it go the rest of the way. Anything wrong with that plan?

Hi there and welcome!

One important thing that has not been mentioned yet.
It's best to avoid wrapping at a temp like "when it hits 165F". What most people fail to mention is that if you wrap brisket too early, you will make roast beef instead of BBQ brisket. It is majorly disappointing to spend all the time, money, and effort to end up with an oven roast beef.

If going to wrap, it's best to make sure it has the bark and color you want before you wrap.
It could sit at 165F for hours so are people wrapping the moment it hits or hours later when it has developed more into a bbq brisket??? They usually fail to mention the details of it or are just regurgitating something they heard/read somewhere.

So please for your own sakes, do not wrap until it DEFINITELY looks like a smoked brisket with bark and color.

Most people also fail to mention why they wrap. I find most do it to speed up the smoke.
Well to speed it up they would be better off cranking up the heat! The brisket doesn't care what temp it is cooked at, as long as it isn't being burnt.

The only other good reason to wrap a brisket is because your smoker dries things out.
In that case I always recommend going unwrapped until the point where there is a risk of drying out to begin. So wrap at that time instead of some arbitrary temp.
This is one of the major pitfalls people run into with a brisket... that and not planning enough time so they rush it and end up with tough undercooked brisket. Yes undercooked brisket is tough because the collagen has not broken down to make the meat tender, so it is tough.
Tough and chewy = undercooked
Tough, crispy, and burnt = overcooked/burnt/dried out

Finally, the POINT muscle will lie to you. It will get hotter and tender well before the rest of the brisket.
When testing for tenderness you want the Flat to be tender but test all over by stabbing with something like a wooden bbq skewer. As mentioned by others, when it goes in like it's peanut butter it is tender and therefore done.
The point may be the thickest are BUT it is made up of a bunch of fat and tenders up well before the dense and meaty flat muscle.


I hope this info helps man :D

 

[sandyut]

230 is gonna be a long cook. I run mine at 275

 

[chopsaw]

Brisket does present some problems in aligning cook time with serving time.

Been cooking live fire / charcoal for a lot of years , but have only started doing briskets about 3 years ago . I came up with a method that works for me , and have hit my target for serving 5 times in a row . Great results also .
I think people go in with the mind set " It's not gonna be done " Once you get past that I really think it helps the results . Both time and quality .

 

[bmudd14474]

I think your plan will work. I tend to lean more towards 250 when cooking but nothing wrong with 230. It may impact your bark a little but just watch it and trust your senses. If its at the color and texture you want then wrap.

I have had some briskets go to 185 before wrapping and smoke at 155 just depends on the brisket.

We can't want to see how it turns out.

Oh yeah I like a long hold. As long as everything has broken down the long hold allows the moisture to rest back into the cells and IMO helps with texture.

 

[chopsaw]

Part of my method is plastic wrap , counter top cool down .

Then cover with a towel .

Watch the temp , then pull the towel . As the brisket cools it sucks the wrap tight
and starts re-absorbing moisture .


When it hits slicing temp , pull the wrap ,

and slice ,

 

[equinn]

230 is gonna be a long cook. I run mine at 275

I ended up going for 250 after reading a few of these comments, but you’re not kidding. I should have cranked it up after I wrapped. It stalled there at 165 for a long time. It was 1 am before it got to temp. Then resting for 2 hours put me in bed at 3 am. Going to be a rough day today. I’ll take pictures when I finally unwrap and slice it.

 

[equinn]

Been cooking live fire / charcoal for a lot of years , but have only started doing

Hi there and welcome!

One important thing that has not been mentioned yet.
It's best to avoid wrapping at a temp like "when it hits 165F". What most people fail to mention is that if you wrap brisket too early, you will make roast beef instead of BBQ brisket. It is majorly disappointing to spend all the time, money, and effort to end up with an oven roast beef.

If going to wrap, it's best to make sure it has the bark and color you want before you wrap.
It could sit at 165F for hours so are people wrapping the moment it hits or hours later when it has developed more into a bbq brisket??? They usually fail to mention the details of it or are just regurgitating something they heard/read somewhere.

So please for your own sakes, do not wrap until it DEFINITELY looks like a smoked brisket with bark and color.

Most people also fail to mention why they wrap. I find most do it to speed up the smoke.
Well to speed it up they would be better off cranking up the heat! The brisket doesn't care what temp it is cooked at, as long as it isn't being burnt.

The only other good reason to wrap a brisket is because your smoker dries things out.
In that case I always recommend going unwrapped until the point where there is a risk of drying out to begin. So wrap at that time instead of some arbitrary temp.
This is one of the major pitfalls people run into with a brisket... that and not planning enough time so they rush it and end up with tough undercooked brisket. Yes undercooked brisket is tough because the collagen has not broken down to make the meat tender, so it is tough.
Tough and chewy = undercooked
Tough, crispy, and burnt = overcooked/burnt/dried out

Finally, the POINT muscle will lie to you. It will get hotter and tender well before the rest of the brisket.
When testing for tenderness you want the Flat to be tender but test all over by stabbing with something like a wooden bbq skewer. As mentioned by others, when it goes in like it's peanut butter it is tender and therefore done.
The point may be the thickest are BUT it is made up of a bunch of fat and tenders up well before the dense and meaty flat muscle.


I hope this info helps man :D

briskets about 3 years ago . I came up with a method that works for me , and have hit my target for serving 5 times in a row . Great results also .
I think people go in with the mind set " It's not gonna be done " Once you get past that I really think it helps the results . Both

Hi there and welcome!

One important thing that has not been mentioned yet.
It's best to avoid wrapping at a temp like "when it hits 165F". What most people fail to mention is that if you wrap brisket too early, you will make roast beef instead of BBQ brisket. It is majorly disappointing to spend all the time, money, and effort to end up with an oven roast beef.

If going to wrap, it's best to make sure it has the bark and color you want before you wrap.
It could sit at 165F for hours so are people wrapping the moment it hits or hours later when it has developed more into a bbq brisket??? They usually fail to mention the details of it or are just regurgitating something they heard/read somewhere.

So please for your own sakes, do not wrap until it DEFINITELY looks like a smoked brisket with bark and color.

Most people also fail to mention why they wrap. I find most do it to speed up the smoke.
Well to speed it up they would be better off cranking up the heat! The brisket doesn't care what temp it is cooked at, as long as it isn't being burnt.

The only other good reason to wrap a brisket is because your smoker dries things out.
In that case I always recommend going unwrapped until the point where there is a risk of drying out to begin. So wrap at that time instead of some arbitrary temp.
This is one of the major pitfalls people run into with a brisket... that and not planning enough time so they rush it and end up with tough undercooked brisket. Yes undercooked brisket is tough because the collagen has not broken down to make the meat tender, so it is tough.
Tough and chewy = undercooked
Tough, crispy, and burnt = overcooked/burnt/dried out

Finally, the POINT muscle will lie to you. It will get hotter and tender well before the rest of the brisket.
When testing for tenderness you want the Flat to be tender but test all over by stabbing with something like a wooden bbq skewer. As mentioned by others, when it goes in like it's peanut butter it is tender and therefore done.
The point may be the thickest are BUT it is made up of a bunch of fat and tenders up well before the dense and meaty flat muscle.


I hope this info helps man :D

It was a beautiful bark when I wrapped it, but then it stalled for a loooong time. I hope it’s Okay.

chopsaw , please tell us your timing method. I’d love to learn.

 

[1MoreFord]

230 is gonna be a long cook. I run mine at 275

I used to cook at 250 on my old offset 'cause it ran so well there. Then I discovered briskets cooked so much faster and tasted as good or better at 325. Only thing is you might have to take it to a bit higher finishing temp to get probe tender. I had 'em go up near 210 with a high temp cook.

 

[equinn]

Forgot pictures - completely spaced. It was delicious but when I sliced it, it fell apart. And of course the outer, thin part that I didn’t trim was a little dry. However, everyone seemed to enjoy it and it had rave reviews. There was nothing left except some crumbs on the cutting board.

I thought the texture should have stood up to the slicing. Don’t know if it was the brisket or the knife. I used a serrated knife. Any thoughts?

 

[jaxgatorz]

Falling apart and a little dry is usually a signs of a tad overdone. I have had more than I would like to remember turn out that way. Still tasty though..